Documentary on the Sangamon River premieres at UIS

February 14, 2006

SPRINGFIELD – The premier of the documentary film The Sangamon
River: A Sense of Place will be at 7 p.m. February 28 in Brookens
Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library at the University
of Illinois at Springfield. The showing, presented by UIS’ Center for State
Policy and Leadership, is free and open to the public.

Directed by UIS Professor Charles Schweighauser and produced by the UIS
Office of Electronic Media, the hour-long film is a profile and a
celebration of the people, ecology, history, and economy of the Sangamon
River Valley. Nearly nine years in the making, the documentary “captures
the charm and beauty of the river and both its calm and raucous nature,”
said Schweighauser, who has canoed most of the river’s 215 miles.

From its beginning near Ellsworth to its end at the Illinois River at
Beardstown, the Sangamon River flows through 10 counties, from McLean to
Cass, and through private land as well as 10,000 acres of public land. The
film features interviews with a spectrum of Sangamon, Menard, and Macon
County residents – ranging from commercial fishermen to farmers, merchants,
environmentalists, and poets. “People use the river for many purposes such
as boating, canoeing, commercial and sport fishing, swimming, skating, and
other recreational activities. And they use its water for both drinking and
industrial purposes,” Schweighauser said.

The film captures many examples of life along the river including the
(legal) practice of “fish hogging,” during which fishermen wade into the
water to search for hollow logs, favorite spots for catfish to spawn. The
men feel inside the logs for catfish and pull them out using only their
hands.

Narrated by Rich Bradley, news director of WUIS/WIPA public radio, the
documentary was previewed last November as part of the Second Annual
Illinois History Video Fair, held in conjunction with the 26th Annual
Illinois History Symposium presented by the Illinois State Historical
Society.

Schweighauser said his interest in doing the documentary first began in
the 1980s when he taught a course for teachers called The Sangamon River
Valley: A Sense of Place and directed a video called Illinois Prairie: A
Sense of Place.

Schweighauser is professor emeritus of Astronomy/Physics, English, and
Environmental Studies at UIS. He may be reached at 206-6721.

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